UNION OF INDIA Vs. DELHI JUDICIAL SERVICE ASSN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) These two appeals are disposed of by a common judgment since the appeals arise from the judgment of the division bench of Delhi High court in CWP No. 4196 of 1983 dated-13/10/1993. The respondent-Delhi Judicial Service Association had filed the writ petition seeking for a writ or order or direction to the appellants to place the Delhi Higher Judicial Service personnel in the pay scale of Rs. 5,900-7,300 or to place the District and Sessions Judges in the pay scale of Rs. 7,300-7,600 and/or to grant the relief w. e. f. 1/1/1986. They also sought for special pay of Rs. 550. 00 p. m. to all officers of Delhi Higher Judicial Service. The High court in the impugned order directed to refix the salary of the members of the Delhi Higher Judicial Service in the pay scale of Rs. 5,900-6,700 w. e. f. 1/1/1986 within a period of four months from the date of the judgment and direction to pay the arrears of salary and allowances thereon within a period of two months thereafter. Feeling aggrieved, the Union of India and the Delhi Administration have filed the appeals respectively. The crucial question that arises for decision is whether all the officers of the Delhi Higher Judicial Service are entitled to the pay scale of Rs. 5,900-6,700 as ordered by the High court Admittedly, the Delhi Higher Judicial Service was constituted by Rules made by the Administrator in consultation with the High court of Delhi exercising the power under proviso to Article 309 of the Constitution

(2.) Rule 18 of the Rules prescribes scale of pay in Part IV, Pay and Allowances which reads as under:

(3.) The High court adopted the principle to consider the claims of the Additional District and Sessions Judges working in the Time Scale for the posts of Selection Grade that five candidates in the order of seniority would be considered for each post "on the basis of merit". Accordingly the Additional District and Sessions Judges working in Time Scale are being considered and given Selection Grade scale of pay on the principle of "seniority-cum-merit". From the correspondence placed before us, it would appear that the High court has been requesting the Union of India to grant revised Selection Grade pay scales to the officers working in the Time Scale also. After the Fourth Pay Commission, it would appear that Super-time Scale and Selection Grade posts have been fused and the District and Sessions Judge and the Additional District and Sessions Judges placed in the Selection Grade are being paid their salary in the pay scale of Rs. 5,900-6,700. Since the correspondence between the Ministry of Law and Justice and the High court did not yield to the result of awarding the Selection Grade Scale pay to all the Additional District and Sessions Judges and the Chief and Additional Metropolitan Magistrates, as mentioned in the Schedule, the above writ petition came to be filed and the High court found that since all the posts of Additional District and Sessions Judges, Chief and Additional Metropolitan Magistrates are inter-transferable posts and they discharging the same duties, are entitled to "equal pay for equal work". The difference of pay between the chief justice of the Supreme court and Judges of the Supreme court, and the chief justice and Judges of High courts is only Rs. 1,000. 00, the same parity be maintained for Selection Grade and Time Scale Additional District and Sessions Judges. Therefore, all the Additional District and Sessions Judges, Chief and Additional Metropolitan Magistrates are entitled to the scale of Rs. 5,900-6,700. As the above scale was given effect from 1/1/1986, all the officers are equally entitled from the same date.